Hi, I'm new to this board and would my family has been interested in getting a dvc membership but I don't have 24,000 and was wondering if anybody would know what the interest rates to get a loan through disney and what year loans they have? If anyone can help me with this it would greatly be appreciated.

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, my husband won't empty the coffers to pay cash for DVC so we financed. We only bought what we could afford to pay off in 5 years. We found we didn't need to purchase a ton of points right off plus YOU DON"T WANT TO because they're easier to sell if you keep to 100 and under pt contracts. So buy 100 pts (160 if you must) and set up a payment plan with YOURSELF (let disney do it's 10 year thing). If you stick with it, it will work. We're 5 years in now and just bought more (after all isn't that the american way

Only buy if it really works for you. You'll see over and over again people saying we should've bought earlier. Maybe - if it works, for YOU.

We'd take the kids every other or every 3 years. Then DVC happened. Did I want to pay annual dues every year for a location I'd have to sit 3 kids on a bus every day to go somewhere, plus the years we wouldn't be going??? No & No - so we didn't buy.

We probably should've bought when they build WL but I could see College coming by that time and didn't want the expense. So for us, buying when we did was appropriate. Buying how we did suited the hubby. And we are presently points poor so we just stayed on cash at the Dolphin.

Make sure you don't over buy and if you do finance - stick to YOUR payment plan. If you've trouble doing that then your guide was right.

Hi, I'm new to this board and would my family has been interested in getting a dvc membership but I don't have 24,000 and was wondering if anybody would know what the interest rates to get a loan through disney and what year loans they have? If anyone can help me with this it would greatly be appreciated.

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The advantage to buying from Disney over resale is lame. Basically you can book a cruise (for a huge amount of points) or RCI that has a bad exchange rate. I highly suggest going through resale. There are several that will help with financing. Disney's financing rates are out of control. If you think you would like to go to Disney (or Hawaii, Hilton Head, Vero Beach) once every two years...then buy dvc in resale. Buy what you can afford...and add on later.

Only buy if it really works for you. You'll see over and over again people saying we should've bought earlier. Maybe - if it works, for YOU.

We'd take the kids every other or every 3 years. Then DVC happened. Did I want to pay annual dues every year for a location I'd have to sit 3 kids on a bus every day to go somewhere, plus the years we wouldn't be going??? No & No - so we didn't buy.

We probably should've bought when they build WL but I could see College coming by that time and didn't want the expense. So for us, buying when we did was appropriate. Buying how we did suited the hubby. And we are presently points poor so we just stayed on cash at the Dolphin.

Make sure you don't over buy and if you do finance - stick to YOUR payment plan. If you've trouble doing that then your guide was right.

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My first opportunity to buy was on my honeymoon.

That marriage ended in divorce. That was expensive. Then between divorce and purchase we built a house, spent a small fortune on fertility treatments, adopted a child, and had a surprise baby. We also got notice that my husband's job was being eliminated (he got reorganized before it happened).

When we finally bought DVC we had cash in the bank, a stable marriage, two much more stable jobs that gave us a household income significant above when my first husband and I first looked. Even when my second husband and I took our first trip together. Enough that we could buy DVC, and still live comfortable, save for retirement, and fund college for our children.

Vacations should never be a burden or an obligation. There were many times before we bought that DVC would have been an unsupportable obligation - where we had more important things to do without money. Like adopting a child, or building our home, or getting through a potential layoff with a feeling of some security.

Hi, I'm new to this board and would my family has been interested in getting a dvc membership but I don't have 24,000 and was wondering if anybody would know what the interest rates to get a loan through disney and what year loans they have? If anyone can help me with this it would greatly be appreciated.

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Best advise is to do your due diligence on what you can afford and what you need out of your vacation. A 1 bed room 2 bed room etc. I can tell you after searching you can get a lot for your buck on a resale look around for a week and study what's out there google timeshare resales look at prices and if you decide to go resale check out the company's ratings and complaints. We did sign up with the Grand Floridian but cancelled earlier this week and now we have an offer in on a resale put in today. Now we wait but if we get it, there will be many awesome vacations and now I won't have to worry about points, banking, borrowing and buying more saving etc. PS this board and members are very good at helping just ask....good luck

Princessbunny, we have all been there when buying a DVC contract was a super exciting concept. But understand what you are getting. You are essentially paying several thousand dollars to lock in a good rate on a hotel room for the next 30-50 years. And by doing so, locking yourself into vacationing where these hotel rooms exist (WDW, DL, etc). Only these hotel rooms have to be booked many, many months in advance. And at peak times, you won't be able to book certain locations outside your home resort at all.

There is no "club" in DVC, despite the spin of the timeshare sales people. It is fixing a rate on future hotel stays. Nothing less or more. Here I am superimposing your dues, plus a fraction of purchase price, versus cost of a cash room rental- but the analogy essentially holds.

So when I see that you are considering paying usurious interest rates to buy in, it is painful. Please think long and hard before you pay this level of interest for this product. Far better to save for a couple years and pay cash. Otherwise you are in essence throwing money away now (interest) in order to save money (DVC versus deluxe Disney hotel rates) in the future.

Also, the comparison of DVC versus a Disney deluxe doesn't always hold true- so know exactly what you are buying before you purchase. Many are very happy with the DVC timeshare accommodations. Some are not- see the many threads here for further details.

All this said, we love our DVC points that we paid for with cash. We will get great value from the product over the years. Just keep in mind that a resale market exists because other people didn't have that same outcome.

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This was incredibly well thought out. Excellent advice/post.

OP, please do not buy and take some time to think all of this over. If you cannot pay cash, you probably do not want this obligation. Paying interest on a timeshare is a little bit insane to me and there are far better (and cheaper) ways to do Disney with that money than paying interest on a DVC contract.

Get to a point where you can save up and have cash reserves to make a big purchase (and this is a MAJOR purchase) rather than have the "gotta have it now" mentality. I hope that doesn't come off as harsh because I truly know how you feel and the excitement of DVC is intense. But I also know that life brings so much at you and it's worth having a nice financial cushion for all those things in life. I don't think a luxury item like DVC is important enough if you don't have that cushion, but that is just my opinion. You could get some fantastic rates at fantastic nearby resorts if you just pay cash when you want to go and occasionally rent points to try it out.

Being an "owner" is actually a liability, not an asset since it is going to depreciate in value over time and has mandatory fees not income. Owners are happy to own because it gets us what is nothing more than prepaying a large amount upfront to get a discounted rate annually by virtue of your dues (whcih rise annually). It's a luxury item and not a necessity and thus, shouldn't be financed imho.

Save up, build a cushion, and then buy cash resale at a whole lot cheaper. Until then, rent DVC or stay off-property at lovely Hiltons, Hyatts, Wyndhams (some of which are on disney property) at a tiny fraction of the cost.

Thank you everyone for your great advice. I think my husband and I will likely look into doing the resale thing next year. I absolutely love Disney and we have gone over the numbers so I'm keeping my fingers crossed for next year and then our daughter will be old enough to take her for her first time. Thank you again for all your replys.

OP, please do not buy and take some time to think all of this over. If you cannot pay cash, you probably do not want this obligation. Paying interest on a timeshare is a little bit insane to me and there are far better (and cheaper) ways to do Disney with that money than paying interest on a DVC contract.

Get to a point where you can save up and have cash reserves to make a big purchase (and this is a MAJOR purchase) rather than have the "gotta have it now" mentality. I hope that doesn't come off as harsh because I truly know how you feel and the excitement of DVC is intense. But I also know that life brings so much at you and it's worth having a nice financial cushion for all those things in life. I don't think a luxury item like DVC is important enough if you don't have that cushion, but that is just my opinion. You could get some fantastic rates at fantastic nearby resorts if you just pay cash when you want to go and occasionally rent points to try it out.

Being an "owner" is actually a liability, not an asset since it is going to depreciate in value over time and has mandatory fees not income. Owners are happy to own because it gets us what is nothing more than prepaying a large amount upfront to get a discounted rate annually by virtue of your dues (whcih rise annually). It's a luxury item and not a necessity and thus, shouldn't be financed imho.

Save up, build a cushion, and then buy cash resale at a whole lot cheaper. Until then, rent DVC or stay off-property at lovely Hiltons, Hyatts, Wyndhams (some of which are on disney property) at a tiny fraction of the cost.

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I love the concept of dvc but I don't want to be burden with paying for it. My question is how do u rent or buy DVc points? We are going this Dec and was wondering how much it would cost to buy 200 points. Would love to stay at GF.

I love the concept of dvc but I don't want to be burden with paying for it. My question is how do u rent or buy DVc points? We are going this Dec and was wondering how much it would cost to buy 200 points. Would love to stay at GF.

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"this" december is awfully optimistic. all of december is one of the busiest periods for DVC bookings and many owners book at 11 months out. also, VGF is a smaller resort with heavy demand so that's making it tougher. you really would need to plan farther in advance.

I love the concept of dvc but I don't want to be burden with paying for it. My question is how do u rent or buy DVc points? We are going this Dec and was wondering how much it would cost to buy 200 points. Would love to stay at GF.

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I think you mean renting the points. However, I'll bet the places you want to go are already booked. You can look at the places selling timeshares and they have points to rent.

I love the concept of dvc but I don't want to be burden with paying for it. My question is how do u rent or buy DVc points? We are going this Dec and was wondering how much it would cost to buy 200 points. Would love to stay at GF.

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Dec 2014 might be more feasible, but you would need to book it in Jan 2104.

So if I like to go in the slow seasons would it make sense to buy a resale @ vero beach? If i do this then decide I really like a particular hotel I can always just buy another one right? How hard is it 2 book 7 months? Also are dvc slow times the same as wdw slow times?

So if I like to go in the slow seasons would it make sense to buy a resale @ vero beach? ...(snip)....

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Possibly since you can generally buy more points initially for your money at VB.

But keep in mind:

* VB has MUCH higher annual dues than the WDW DVC resorts.
* Slow times for the parks does not directly equate to "easy to book DVC accommodations". For example, early December is relatively slow for the parks. It is the a VERY DIFFICULT time to book DVC accommodations at the 7 month mark.

In almost all cases, it makes more sense to buy something at WDW if that is where you plan to stay the most.

I tried booking Hilton Head exactly at 8, 7 months out and was unable to get a reservation. Purchasing where you want to go, at least somewhere you want to be is better. If you like Vero beach.....then sure, get that one.

So if I like to go in the slow seasons would it make sense to buy a resale @ vero beach?

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i wouldn't. buy VB to stay at VB. otherwise, you are taking on extra risk due to higher annual dues and the risk of coastal storms that hammer the resort (resulting in even HIGHER annual dues, also called a "special assessment"). there is also some risk of not getting what you want at 7 months out. and there is a very small risk that DVC may eventually spin off some of the offsite resorts, in which case VB would not be part of the DVC system.

VB is cheap for a reason.

If i do this then decide I really like a particular hotel I can always just buy another one right?

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you would have to sell the current contract (at a loss) and then pay closing costs for the new contract.

Also are dvc slow times the same as wdw slow times?

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no. the whole period from late sept (food&wine at epcot) through early january is DVC's busiest booking period. early dec is still pretty slow in the parks but things can be very tight for DVC at the 7 month window as that is one of the very peak seasons for DVC bookings.